An edge connector is commonly mounted on an edge portion of a circuit board, to enable that circuit board to be connected to another circuit board. In one arrangement, a main circuit board or mother board, has a plurality of open connecters on one of its surfaces, and each of several daughter boards has an edge connector which can mate with one of the connectors on the mother board.
It is common to provide a metal shield, usually of sheet metal, around each connector to provide for electrostatic discharge and to guard against radio frequency interference. It is common to form each shield with depending pin portions which project through grounded plated-through holes in the circuit board, so as to mount the shield on the board and to ground the shield. The need to drill holes in the circuit board, and possibly to plate such holes, adds to the expense of the connector assembly. In some cases, the connector is initially designed without a shield, and it would be desirable if a shield could be retrofitted to the connector and board without having to drill holes in the board. In some cases, the connector is surface mounted so it does not require holes in the board, and it is desirable to enable the shield to be mounted without holes. Thus, a shield for static discharge and electromagnetic interference protection, which could be readily mounted on the edge portion of a circuit board around an edge connector thereon, without the need for the drilling and/or electroplating of board holes to hold and ground the shield, would be of value.